"I just know this, that he's interested in Kentucky," Bobby Petrino Sr. told the newspaper. "He wants to stay in the SEC. That was his life's goal was to go to the SEC."

Bobby Petrino reportedly has interest in the head coach opening at Kentucky. (AP Photo)

Kentucky announced on Sunday that head coach Joker Phillips would not return next season.

Yahoo! Sports reported on Sunday that the Wildcats would not consider hiring Petrino.

Petrino was fired by Arkansas in April after a motorcycle accident led to the revelation of an affair with a 25-year-old woman who worked for him.

At the time, Arkansas athletic director Jeff Long said "coach Petrino engaged in a pattern of misleading and manipulative behavior designed to deceive me and members of the athletic staff, both before and after the motorcycle accident."

Petrino's father believes that his son has suffered enough.

"You know, he made mistakes," Petrino Sr. told the newspaper. "But he couldn't have gone through any punishment worse than losing his job. He's missed coaching tremendously."

Petrino has ties to the state of Kentucky, coaching at Louisville from 2003 to 2006 before departing for a one season stint with the Atlanta Falcons.